At the end of every school year, I throw out my lesson plans. Some would question that practice by telling me that I should merely tweak which lessons didn’t go well and reuse what did to avoid the time-consuming task of perpetual re-creation. However, I have learned through experience that each new year brings a … Continue reading Digital Natives & Instructional Design
Harkness: Student-Centered Learning
Guest post by Andrew Stacy It is a pleasure to invite teachers who are also passionate about their craft to contribute to this blog. I was thrilled when Andrew Stacy, a colleague of mine in the English department, agreed to write about his use of The Harkness Method, a student-centered approach to deeper, richer encounters … Continue reading Harkness: Student-Centered Learning
Curiosity: The Key to Success
Meet Caine, a 9-year-old from East L.A. whose curiosity has inspired millions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faIFNkdq96U Why is it that some of our students, like Caine, will follow their curiosity and interests to produce amazing creations or contrivances whilst others flounder or look to the teacher to tell them what to do next? How do we as teachers … Continue reading Curiosity: The Key to Success
EdTech Resources
With the sheer volume of EdTech tools being released, often on a daily basis, it can be challenging to know which will be the most beneficial in the high school English classroom. Below are just a few of the tools which I use regularly, if not daily, and as I experiment with new/improved EdTech tools, … Continue reading EdTech Resources
Genius Hour 2.0
From Day 1, I was already reflecting on how it could be better. I am one of those teachers who jumps right in and iterates as I go. This was no exception.
naomijaynes.com 